Wednesday, 30 June 2010

Week 1 Run 2Well I managed to get up and run to work this morning. First time I've done that in ages and it felt good even though at 7am it was already 15 degrees and really humid.

CircuitsI also went to circuits at lunchtime with Smurfy, taken today by the lovely Craig. I love circuits so much I think it's my favourite class no matter who takes it.After a quick warm up there was a minute at each station: Double crunches, Medicine ball twist, Press up & komodo, Box jump, Bunny hops, Sprint & bear crawl, Overhead tricep extension, Close grip bicep curls, Isometric shoulder hold, Burpees, Wide to narrow press up, Bent over chest flyes, Upright row a 2 minute rest & the whole circuit again & then a cool down.

1000km in 2010Distance in June has been my lowest this year to date, this was due to recovery time after the Edinburgh half marathon and my trip to Montreal. I still managed to clock up 64.89 km (40.32 miles) though & it takes my distance from the start of the year till today to........618.22km (384.15 miles)So with 6 months of the year still to go I'm fairly confident I can smash my target of 1000km in 2010.

Tomorrow morning will see me in the gym for 7.45am - can't wait - I'm back in the zone again :-)

Tuesday, 29 June 2010

How is everyone?I'm a happy little fudgeykin as I know have a training plan in place for the next 14 weeks & am excited to get back into the regime. I also had a great day out yesterday at Melville Castle for our department away day & this year never got sunburnt but spent a whole day out in the fresh air - it was superb.

Away DayWe have a brilliant people committee who work really hard to put on a variety of events for us throughout the year such as quiz nights, a Christmas night, learning lunch sessions and the annual operations team away days. Most people who know me will know that team building cheesy touchy feely events aren't really my cup of tea -what I really don't like I suppose is falseness - but I'm very fortunate to work for a really good company and with some amazing people so our away day the last 2 years have been really good experiences - coming from someone who isn't usually up for that sort of thing this is a huge thumbs up. The last 2 years have been run by The Team Challenge Company who are just first class and if anyone out there is looking to organise any kind of team building, corporate or simply fun event I'd really recommend them. I don't want to give too much info away as there is still one group to take part tomorrow but my favourite part of the day was the bungee run :-)Huge Thanks to Denise for listening to my complaining about the lack of healthy eating options last year - the food was really good this year.I can't wait to see some of the photos

The Training PlanHaving procrastinated too long and let other things get in the way I finally sat down to try and pull a training plan together for The Glasgow Half Marathon and The Scottish Kilomathon - there are now only 14 weeks till the kilomathon so I decided I would put together a 14 week plan with the half marathon at week 10 being part of the training. Now the kilomathon is only about 5km more than the half marathon but I really want to aim for a 2 hour half marathon and this time I want to try & train over the distance rather than just under it. With this being the first ever Scottish Kilomathon I couldn't find any suitable plans to dissect and tailor my own from so I've gone slightly bonkers and opted for an intermediate marathon training plan. No this doesn't mean I'm running a marathon! But it will make sure I am race ready and it really suits the level of fitness I am at and fits in with what I'd like to achieve....so keep following my blog for progress.

Week 1 Run 1Not off to the best of starts when I failed to get out of bed this morning for my run. I was absolutely shattered. On a positive note I'm getting much better at listening to my body and hopefully this will help me avoid injury. I'm now certain the problems I had with my illiotibial band were as a result of over training - so lesson learnt and not to be repeated. I value my health and fitness so much that I'd be an absolute nightmare to live & work with if I hurt myself and couldn't train.Today's run did still happen though it was just in the evening rather than the morning. It was just a simple 30 minute session - 10 minutes easy, 10 minutes tempo & 10 minutes easy.....job done and a few km in the training bank. The plan is to run to work tomorrow which is an easy 35 minute run and I was all organised and have work clothes in my locker so no excuses.

Sunday, 27 June 2010

I hope you've all been managing to enjoy our summer sunshine. It's not my kind of weather - but nice to see some sun all the same and great to hang washing out on the line to dry.I hope the sports fans out there are also enjoying all the summer sport - The World cup and Wimbledon in particular. I actually have seen none of either yet this year.I have to confess though to getting sucked into Big Brother - I know shameful but at the end of a busy day it requires little to no brain effort to watch :-)

I think it's fair to say I'm over my jet lag now and back to form after a little dip last week - I also discovered that piriton & I just don't get along. With the warm weather and having been out cutting grass and weeding I have been suffering with itchy eyes, runny nose & yesterday a rash from the weeds in the garden - on Friday evening I took a piriton tablet & proceeded to fall asleep for 2 hours after dinner - only getting up for an hour or so to watch some TV before going back to bed & yesterday after coming in from cutting the grass & weeding for about an hour and a half I thought I better take a tablet as my arms were red & blotchy & itchy & again I ended up falling asleep for an hour! I've now invested in some Non drowsy hayfever & allergy relief tablets and unless I want a good nights sleep will be staying away from the piriton

RunningThere has been a small amount of running this week. Friday morning I managed to haul my butt out of bed and into the gym for my regular Friday morning running session, then this morning I headed out about 10.20am for a quick 5k. It was 20 degrees and a very hot, sweaty run. I was Thankful for a small breeze on the homeward stretch and for some shade from the trees in East Fettes Avenue. I was a little slower than my usual pace but just pleased to be out and running. Again today I noticed a distinct lack of men - maybe they are just more sensible than to go out running in this heat? I'm hoping to get my training plan in place very soon for the Glasgow half marathon in 10 weeks. I know my training plans already for Mon to Thurs this week in my head so as long as I get some time before Thurs to plan a bit further ahead it'll all be good.This week is also going to see the return of my 3 mornings a week in the gym - it slipped a little since the Edinburgh half marathon, but I think I needed that rest time - though now it's time to get serious again if I really want sub 2 hours in Glasgow.

GarminI'm having some problems with Mr Garmin he doesn't seem to be picking up the satellite signal very well when I first switch on & I'm finding I'm standing around for ages waiting to get started running. I have a Forerunner 205 - does anyone else have this problem?

The Fudgey KitchenToday I've made some butternut squash & carrot soup & butternut squash chilli. If you didn't already know - I'm a huge butternut squash fan LOL.I also have some pictures of the amazing orange baked cheesecakes I made last weekend which I must post up.

Well DoneOne last final thing before I go I just want to say a massive Well Done to Karen Selby who ran in the Prestwold 10k today in 30 degree heat & still managed a cracking time of 56mins 57 secs. Well Done to Claire & Valine who were also running - you ladies look amazing in the post race pictures.....please share your secret ;-)Well Done to all of you.

Wednesday, 23 June 2010

How is everyone? I've not been feeling quite myself the last few days - a combination of a number of things including not sleeping well but after today's workout I don't think that's going to be an issue tonight!Nothing for anyone to be worrying about though - I'll soon bounce back to my usual fudgey self.A bit of a random mish mash of updates on a few things so bear with me - as I said on Sunday normal service will return soon.

Aggression sessionSometimes you need an outlet for stress and angst & today's session satisfied that need in full:-)

It was really good to do something slightly different from the usual, but my upper arms are feeling it already as I type! It was just what the Doctor ordered though.

Silent AuctionJudi's Rays of Sunshine's silent auction ended last night at 5pm & I'm so happy to tell everyone that we raised another £1,000. I'm pretty certain that when all the lots are paid for we'll have exceeded our £10,000 target - plus the gift aid will inflate it even more. I'll update you later in the week on how we've done. Thank you Thank you Thank you to everyone again for sponsorship, baking, auction items, auction bids, time - which I know is so precious and all the other things that folk did to help - you are all amazing x

Monday SpinMonday: Smurfy & I headed to lunchtime spin - it was packed to capacity & taken by the lovely but evil Andy. It was great class as always & Smurfy & I though we had to take bikes at the back rather than our usual front row position still worked flat out & looked like we'd been for a dip in the pool by the time we'd finished LOL. So sets you up for an afternoon in the office though.

Thank youI want to Thank the girls for the Spa voucher they got me & presented me with when I got back from Canada to cheer me up as I've been under a lot of tension recently. I have the best friends ever. I hope to go for my 'treatment' just before our littlest niece's christening.

Glasgow Half MarathonI still haven't drawn up my training plan for GHM but I'm planning a run tomorrow morning & will have my plan in place by the end of the week - really GHM is just a training run for the inaugural Scottish Kilomathon 4 weeks later

Special Big HugA special big hug from Scotland to Paul & Kristin & all the family across the pond. Thinking of you all. Send Diane our love. Mum Smith has been passing on the news & Mr Fudgey and I are thinking of you all & sending lots and lots of love. Miss you guys - wish I could give you a proper hug Kristin - hope these wee guys will do for now.

Hugs also to anyone who needs one - never under estimate the power of a hug - we all need one from time to time.

Sunday, 20 June 2010

How is everyone? I'm so sorry I didn't mean to abandon you all for the last 10 days - life just got in the way a bit. I've been sitting here for the last 30 minutes thinking where to begin & how to fit everything in without boring you to sleep - so I'm going to try & keep it as short & as snappy as possible & hopefully then normal fudgey service can resume.

Sunday 13th June - Race for LifeI'm not going to do a separate race report on this as it isn't really a running event as such. It was a cold gray & drizzly morning in Edinburgh & unfortunately this matched my general mood for the day - quite a bit of stress & tension going on.I met up with the rest of Judi's Rays of Sunshine at Holyrood, I wanted to run the course & Julie J said she'd run too....I'm so glad she did as if it hadn't been for JJ I'd have quit on that bloody hill! I'm a very solitary runner but it was great having someone else there & though there were a few points on the uphill that I was tempted to stop & walk a bit the fact that JJ was running slightly ahead of me made me keep going. The issue was not only my blue mood, but also the congestion on the course. Though we started in the running section - most people were walking. I remind myself that this event isn't about running - it's a very emotional experience and is definitely more about the taking part, the fundraising & the atmosphere. Once up that B of a hill the pacing was better & JJ and I had an amazing sprint finish - but crossed the line hand in hand as this was all about doing it for Judi.At the finish area we both felt sick - sign of pushing it to the max. After getting our goodie bags & medals I met hubby & was heading home & JJ met her husband & daughter and went off to meet the rest of the team. Sorry guys that I couldn't join you for the social bit - hope you all had a great time. Amazing news is that fundraising is up to £9,005.

Sunday 13th June - PackingWhen I got home I actually slept a little in the afternoon & then I had to pack for my work trip. Part of the tension was that this would be the first time since last August that Mr Fudgey & I would be apart & I was going to really miss him.

Monday 14th June - Friday 18th June - Montreal, CanadaMonday saw me flying off to Montreal for work & it was a pretty full on week, but fruitful as got lots out of it - in fact more than I'd actually thought we'd get - so pretty pleased. Being so busy in the day the time flew by. I was staying in a fantastic hotel - whirlpool bath & flat screen tv in the bathroom and even better still practically my own personal gym! There was a 24 hour fitness suite in the hotel which I managed to get to on Tues, Wed & Thurs & did both cardio & weights so felt good. The reason I say personal is that on Tuesday I had the whole fitness suite to myself, Wednesday there was another woman in when I arrived but she only stayed another 20 minutes & then I was on my own & on Thursday morning (very early) I had the place to myself for 30 minutes before 2 people arrived. After work on Thursday it was back to the airport to head home. It was a long journey & by the time I got home around 11.45am on Friday I was knackered. It was so good to be back though & to see my fabulous husband. My only regret is that I never had any time to see much of Montreal so I can't really tell you too much about it as a place - maybe another time, after all what's the saying about all work & no play?

Friday 18th June - Jet LagI was wiped out on Friday but managed to get an hour or so sleep while the wonderful husband headed off to do the shopping. It was great to see and cuddle all the little furry dudes again too.

Friday 18th June - Hotel LeishmanFriday night was the dinner party at Smurfy's. Smurfy won a dinner party for 8 cooked by an executive chef from a local restaurant. We'd all been looking forward to this for ages & weren't disappointed. Great food, Great company & Great champagne!Thanks all for a great evening xMr Fudgey & I had originally planned to stay over on Friday night but I was so so desperate to sleep in & wake up in my own bed that we decided we would head home. A HUGE Thank you to Mum & Dad Smith who acted as taxi & came & picked us up - we really appreciated it. Thank you so much.

Saturday 19th Junevery very lazy day.

Sunday 20th June - HAPPY FATHERS DAY

Well Guys I'm going to leave this here for tonight. I will be back again very soon, as there's a little more in my head.....not to mention the small matter of just 11 weeks today till the Glasgow half marathon & i haven't even drawn up my training plan yet!

Thursday, 10 June 2010

I had not signed up for anything after the half marathon but when I heard the news that our friend & colleague Judi had recently been diagnosed with Cancer of the Pancreas and is undergoing chemotherapy, and that a group of my amazing, kind and generous colleagues from Standard Life Investments had signed up to take part in the Race for Life on Sunday, I just had to sign up too.

Our target is to raise £10,000 to fund research into this horrible disease, particularly to improve early detection, diagnosis and treatment and, ultimately, quality and length of life for patients.

We have a large team to walk/run on Judi's behalf: 'Judi's Rays of Sunshine' comprising the following members:

All the ladies are amazing but I'd like to make a special mention to Jane Humpage who set up the justgiving site, and has been sorting everyone out with our special t-shirts for Sunday - can't wait to see them. Jane has a pretty full on workload at the moment too so I just want to say Thanks to her for all her organising on top of everything else & of course to her boss Debbie for being so supportive too.As well as the justgiving site for sponsorship we are also having a bake sale at the office tomorrow and again Thanks to Jane & Eileen who have been organising this, but also Thanks to everyone who is helping man the tables, supplying cakes (especially my fabby Mum in Law) & buying them too. There will also be raffle tickets & lucky straws to purchase for those trying to be good. In addition to the Bake Sale we are also launching a Silent Auction and have some fantastic items to be bid upon. An enormous Thank you to the many generous donators and to everyone who has been phoning & emailing around to ask for goodies. I know Linda Whitelaw has being doing a huge amount. You have all done Judi proud.

Don't forget the menIt's not just the ladies that are involved either. Special Thanks to Mr Fudgey for making the posters to display and for being the official photographer on Sunday. An enormous Thanks to Mike for his contribution to the post race social event, Thanks to David W who has also been busy on the silent auction front and to Stuart & David who I think have been tasked with decorating the venue.

THANK YOUThere are so many people that have sponsored us, are helping with the bake sale, the raffle & the silent auction, those that are taking part & supporting on Sunday that there are just too many people to mention individually, but Thank you to everyone - all your help is so so appreciated and I know Judi will want me to say a massive Thank you to you all.

So if anyone is at a loose end on Sunday morning at 11am why not head down to Holyrood Park in Edinburgh to cheer everyone on. It should be a great day. I'll let you know how it all goes....with photos too.

Wednesday, 9 June 2010

Sorry sorry sorry. I hadn't forgotten about my blog I've just not been in the right frame of mind to write - & sometimes when you have nothing positive to say you're better just shutting up! There's not been anything bad happening but I've just been a bit fed up & a little stressed out - back to normal now though & will try & catch up all up to date for the last week.

WednesdayI ran in the morning - a fast 5k. Then I also went to circuits for the first time in months - I adore circuits class - think I am a glutton for punishment & last weeks class didn't disappoint. Already had pretty 'good' ab DOMS from Tuesday's PT so when you read the list of stations & see all the ab work you can imagine how I felt afterwards.There were 21 stations and we did 90 seconds at eachstep ups, split squat,plyometric lunges,swiss ball reverse curl,swiss ball passes, swiss ball plank, swiss ball crunches, bent over row, clean & press, jabs & squat thrust, single leg deep hops, squat & hold, lunge & hold, crunches, plank, glute bridge, press ups, press & push, lat raises, mountain climbers & sprints

FridayDidn't make it for my Friday morning run and couldn't go at lunchtime as I had to be home for the surveyor coming at 3pm.

SaturdayWas a really hot day here but it was lovely & quiet so hubby & I just enjoyed being at home.

SundayI headed into the gym & did a 6k run on the treadmill before going to the beautician and then meeting Mr Fudgey for cake & coffee. We then went to help his Mum & Dad with their stall at an Antique Fair before heading home & then I spent the afternoon in the kitchen making sweet potato, coconut & chilli soup, sweet potato curry & rhubarb crumble :-)

MondayBack to work. Things are really really busy at the moment and I had a pretty full on day.

TuesdayNever wrote this down until I came to try & blog & 24 hours on I can't clearly remember it all - I am such a sieve head sometimes.

Hill intervals 6% gradient 30 sec at 8km/h & 1 min at 9.2km/h - 6 times - I felt sick & was a lovely sweaty mess by only about 5 minutes into the session.....love it though!

3 x superset of front squats with 15kg barbell - was so sweaty after the running the bar kept sliding! & 24 power lunges (12 each leg)

We had our annual conference at work yesterday & social evening afterwards.

TodayPlan was to get up and run this morning but I had a really restless night of sleep so just went into work with Mr Fudgey - plus I needed that hour before my 2 and half hours of meetings kicked off at 9am. I was delighted to get in to work to find the home report for the flat had been completed.I headed to circuits with Smurfy & KMac today - the first time the 3 of us have gone to the gym together in ages. It was great.I don't know how long we spent at each station today but we had press up hold, single leg raises, alternate arm & leg extensions, theraband sit & hold, skipping, punching punch bag, squeeze sit & hold, bench side steps, swing & squat, hops, mountain climbers, sprints, and agility ladder. Then we finished up with some partnered pad & punching work. Was a great class today - sad already I will miss next week - though did suggest I could video conference in.Before leaving work this evening I was super happy to see our flat up on the ESPC - officially now on the market so we will sit back & wait & see what happens.

MoviesLast week we watched BladeRunner - which I have to confess I didn't enjoy - Mr Fudgey despairs of me I think. We also watched Alice in Wonderland which was good.

Weighty IssuesMy diet has been not so good since the half marathon & I've gained a few pounds so I really need to make a concerted effort to get back to normality and to make sure I stick to the 3 mornings a week at the gym - I've only being doing 1 morning a week for the last few weeks, but I think my body & mind really needed this recovery period. I take the positive that I recognise my shortcomings and know exactly what I need to do to address them.

Race for LifeThis Sunday is our Race for Life event & I really want to do a completely separate post on Judi's Rays of Sunshine so promise I'll do that tomorrow. You can join our Judi's Rays of Sunshine group on facebook.

I'm sure I've missed out lots of stuff but I have brain drain now & am hungry so I'll love you leave you there. Back tomorrow I promise.

Tuesday, 1 June 2010

I'm feeling much better and more rested after a week of very little activity. I only trained for an hour last week which compared to the 5 or 6 hours I had been doing including an average of 25 miles running a week was practically nothing, but I felt after the half marathon I really needed a break to let my body & mind recover.

There's not much news to report from the weekend I've been pretty wiped out & had a migraine on Sunday afternoon that ended up in me going to bed & sleeping for a few hours. Thankfully this isn't something that I suffer from regularly.I did manage to watch 3 whole films over the last few days though - which for me is something of an achievement as I have a bad habit of dozing off. We watched Leon - OMG how have I never seen this movie? - I loved it. We also watched the 3rd Blade movie - Blade Trinity - it wasn't as good as the first 2 but still worth watching and last night we watched The Avengers - a little odd, but then the tv series was too.

Mr Fudgey and I both had the day off yesterday but never did anything special - it was just nice to have a day relaxing together.

Back to work today - confused already with the days after having the day off yesterday.

POSITIVITYThere seems to be lots going on at the moment for loads of people I know, people coping with loss, friends & colleagues who are very ill, people under a lot of stress, people job hunting, people flat hunting or moving house & people who have family or friends who are in hospital - I'm sending everyone loads of love, hugs & positive thoughts.

I have one last thing to say before I go....

WELL DONEAn enormous Well Done to my Mum, Sister & Nieces who completed their sponsored walk in aid of the girls' nursery. I'm looking forward to seeing pictures of them with their medals.